It seems the sensation never leaves you. Went down on black ice this time last year with an Artic bearing down on me. Fortunately the driver could see what was about to happen and reacted accordingly.
Just came back from a ride, even though the sun had got to work and deiced the roads every time I rode on a shaded spot was a hairs standing up on the back of the neck moment. I know it's good to be cautious but not to the point of almost going rigid. 🙄
I think that maybe even though it was nearly 10 years ago I was diagnosed with Osteoporosis some sort of self preservation mechanism must kick in which I no bad thing I guess?
Now's the time of year for a turbo. You can spend an hour on Zwift then climb off safe and dry but absolutely beasted. I was on mine a couple of weeks ago and one E. Pooley went past me, no chance of me keeping up though.
You can spend an hour on Zwift then climb off safe and dry but absolutely beasted
Beasted and dry?
At the suggestion of some friends, I agreed to do a January fitness challenge - to ride my bike every day in January. In my wisdom, I decided that this should be 100% outdoors - no "cheating" by racking up dry miles on Zwift - I would do it proper, like. In the end, I ended up doing mostly road miles as I didn't want to spend the whole month washing bikes and kit, although at times I was coming back dirtier than I've returned from winter MTB rides!
The reality has been...well, I've really enjoyed it and now that it's coming to an end, feel a little sad about it. I would say that I've really enjoyed 80% of the rides I've done, mostly enjoyed about 10%, and a couple of them have scared the willies out of me! These were 25 mile commutes at 7am in -5C temperatures when, unquestionably, black ice was a risk. In fact, forget "a risk" - I was actually having to actively avoid ice on the roads those days. When I got to work on the worst day, I realised that the most painful part of my body was...my hands, from the handlebar death-grip! I've got a load of sympathy for your tensing up - I was doing much the same for most of the ride.
Fortunately, I stayed shiny side up and tomorrow's finish line looks to be a good day to ride, so not expecting any big disasters. If I do this in the future, I'm not sure I'd want to ride on some of the roads I've ridden on this month because, frankly, it was a bit daft and the risk of accident was way, way too high. I shall not be so stubborn and will use the turbo instead!
That said, I still think the correct place to ride a bike is outdoors...
daern, good man you are far braver than I! 😔
When it's less than 0° ... that's the time for using the MTB!
The definition of inevitability is cresting a hill and noticing too late that the north-facing descent is sparkling.
Used the mtb on the way in this morning, dropped it once on a right turn full of ice but managed to clip out and stand upright. Made the right decision of leaving the commuter at home. Was a lot more cautious after that.
It was fun riding past the traffic on my long travel 29er, mouthful's of road juice less so.
Morning commute will see me tick over 500km for the month, not intentional but a good start to the year.
Turbo or Ice tyres for me. I remember sliding down a road at around 25 mph on my MTB, then crashing another 2 times on the way to work - that was something like 25 YEARS ago.
I stopped riding in icy conditions, until I bought Snow Studs in 2010. Then last year, Ice Spiker Pro for the FS.
I don't road ride when there's a risk of ice. I do MTB though and I take it really easy on roads. Chose a different route today to avoid a road I know would have been bad.
I had planned to ride to Bristol twice this week to bring my monthly total up nice and high but there was either the risk of very poor visibility and/or ice each time so I had to concede.
Yeah I know what you mean.
Riding to work last Thursday on cycle paths near river and have done this route for almost 10 years so know it well and usual places prone to frost, no frost on all the usual places, take a slight turn to the right and I'm on the ground so fast I didn't even get chance to release hands from bars on road bike hitting ground face first.
2 teeth knocked out, another broken and another chipped.
Collected myself and teeth off ground, helped by pedestrian with load of tissues, dazed but cycled 4 miles back home and drove to A & E, 20 stitches in various facial wounds.
Saw another guy at A&E with suspected broken collar bone who had fallen at exactly the same place.
Dentists last Friday to remove a root/exposed nerve 🙁
I'm convinced that due to the forward position on road bike and being clipped in I've suffered more than I would've done on my old flat bar hybrid, maybe would've landed on my shoulder/arm, so I reverted to riding the hybrid from Monday.
Back to the Dentist tomorrow for a discussion, I can see the pounds signs in his eyes...
Had a few days leave to use up this month and racked up 468 miles outside, including a few commutes to work at -3 or -4. Running 35mm G-Ones with no problems so far. A student flew past me one frosty morning on his skinny tyred road bike and binned it about 30 seconds later. I stopped to check he was ok and he just said "It's icy" - I showed him my Bolt showing -2° and said "I know"
The road bike is hung up til March (April, if March 2019 is like March 2018 !)..but the MTB still comes out to play, with careful route choices to avoid the most ice prone tarmac amd avoid completely truck-laden roads.
And turbo if it's really really bad
I learned my lesson after the bike suddenly disappeared from under me one time on a downwards sloping road... and a resultant head-on-roadside-banking contact (and as it transpired a damaged disc in my neck, no riding for about 6 months, physio and traction each week etc. )
The burning feeling in my fingers as a result was a joy to remember (a nerve trapped in my neck where it exits the spine at that disc and goes down the arm).
We did finish the ride tho 😎
How does one get to work on a zwift ?
Yeah, I'm pretty nervous on my commute after binning it on black ice last year. The irony is that I went on the road because I thought the cycle path would be too dangerous. Just a sprained wrist and bruising so luckier than some other posters here.
I've fallen off mountain bikes hundreds of times in 21 years of riding them and very seldom really hurt myself. Fell off the roadie twice in three minutes on black ice that I just didn't see - the surface looked perfectly normal, not even wet. Fell off really badly on 18 September, broke ribs, collar bone and got a frozen shoulder. I'm beginning to recover from all that now so I certainly won't be taking any unnecessary risks from now on, probably won't go out unless the temperature is over 3c.
In a way I'm glad my September crash was a result of my own recklessness and not that I got caught unawares by ice or gravel. It means that with a little more care I should be OK for the future.
trail_rat
Member
How does one get to work on a zwift ?
Work from home?
Trike to work day. Plus turbo later.
Some nasty injuries there folk. I went out for 10 miles with the Ice Spikers last night - mix of trails with a couple of tarmac sections. Exceptional grip, and I even hit a 5 minute tarmac climb in my second fastest time, despite the Spikes - evidence says they aren't that draggy.
I not go out without them in this sort of weather. Anyone commuting, then look at Marathon Winters. My Snow Studs had around 100 spikes, and were sufficient for most riding. The Ice Spikers are total overkill for tarmac, 360 spikes, and incredibly noisy, soo good making folk turn round to think 'what the heck is that ?'
I once came across a fantastic video of some guys riding mountain bikes with spiked tyres through a stunning winter landscape somewhere very cold like Sweden or Finland. They climbed gradually up a frozen river, rode across the ponds and tarns at the col then down the frozen other side, an absolutely superb trip in amazing conditions. I've searched Vimeo and YouTube but can't find it. Anybody know what it was?